3M (NYSE:MMM) Shares Down 1.3%

3M (NYSE:MMM)’s share price fell 1.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $91.72 and last traded at $91.95. 759,368 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 6,004,081 shares. The stock had previously closed at $93.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on MMM. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of 3M in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of 3M from $95.31 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of 3M from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of 3M from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of 3M from $126.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.50.

3M Trading Down 2.0 %

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $95.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.69, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market cap of $50.53 billion, a PE ratio of -7.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.02.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.31 by $0.11. 3M had a negative net margin of 21.40% and a positive return on equity of 62.45%. The business had revenue of $8.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.69 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.28 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that 3M will post 8.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

3M Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a $1.51 dividend. This is a positive change from 3M’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $6.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.61%. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -47.82%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Rodriguez Beatriz Karin Chavez sold 426 shares of 3M stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.32, for a total value of $39,328.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,966 shares in the company, valued at $366,141.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its stake in 3M by 15.4% in the third quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 110,988 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $10,391,000 after acquiring an additional 14,775 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of 3M during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,855,000. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in shares of 3M by 49.7% during the 3rd quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 16,747 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $1,568,000 after buying an additional 5,561 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in shares of 3M by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 18,487 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $2,021,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MWA Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of 3M during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,723,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

3M Company Profile

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company's Safety and Industrial segment offers industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications; autobody repair solutions; closure systems for personal hygiene products, masking, and packaging materials; electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance, power distribution, and electrical original equipment manufacturers; structural adhesives and tapes; respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions; and natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles.